The town of Ihtiman lies 55km to the southeast of Sofia, in a lowland of the same name. The town is surrounded by mountains on all sides, which creates а specific microclimate of temperature inversions and extremely cold winters. The town is a starting point for hikes in the Ihtiman ridge of the Sredna Gora mountain. A lot of villages are scattered to the west of the town, while 15km away from Ihtiman lies the upper end of the Iskar dam – a preferred place for local fishermen.
Ihtiman has never been a tourist centre though recently it became quite popular for its 18-hole golf course of 5335 meters with a Par 71 rating. British experts and Spanish architects have designed and set up the course, which opened in 2000. The course and the surrounding complex, named Hotel and Country Club Air Sofia, provides a good choice of sports and leisure activities including horse riding, tennis (on dustless synthetic courts), football on a full-size grass pitch, volleyball, basketball, squash, bowling, table tennis and swimming (in two pools). The complex also has several bars, a restaurant with local and continental cuisine, a 3-star hotel and several villas each with kitchenette, spacious sitting rooms and fireplaces.
